Sydney Schwabe (Photo by Noah Clooten)
The women’s basketball team snatched a gutsy win to lead Lake Region State College on the road this weekend.
On Sunday, in St. Paul, Minn., the Royals squeaked out a 75-74 win over Bay College. The Norse entered the game ranked No. 21 in NJCAA Division II. It was the Royals’ fifth straight win, and sixth in their last seven after an 0-2 start. LRSC is 6-3 on the young campaign.
Sophomore Sydney Schwabe led the Royals with 27 points. After returning from volleyball, she’d gotten off to a relatively slow start, but now it appears the rust is behind her. She tied her collegiate career high in points, matching a 27-point performance against Miles Community College from last season on March 2.
Schwabe shot 10-of-20 overall and 5-of-12 from beyond the arc.
Three of her points came at the most critical time. Tied 72-72 with about 1:06 left, Schwabe swished a deep three to give LRSC the lead. The Royals gave up a last-second layup, but it didn’t matter.
LRSC led 26-22 at the end of the first quarter and 41-38 at halftime. The Royals were outscored by 10 in the third quarter to fall behind, 67-60, but they held Bay College to just seven points in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
Zoie Austin added 12 points, while Lara Graham scored 11. All nine Royals who appeared in the game put up points.
LRSC was actually outrebounded, 67-48. But it did have two players with double-figure rebounds, as Caitlin Hull had 12 and Kiriteana Patea had 11. Bay College turned the ball over 21 times compared to LRSC’s 15.
The win followed a 68-59 victory over Hamline JV on Saturday. Both games were held at Hamline University in St. Paul.
The LRSC men were in action Friday and Sunday at the same venue. The Royals grabbed a 79-75 win over Hamline JV on Friday to extend their winning streak to six. They lost on Sunday, 79-69 to Bay College. They’re now 7-3 on the young season.
In Friday’s win, four Royals scored double-figure points. Alvin Payne led them with 16, while Brennan Johnson had 13, Jeremiah Johnson had 12 and Remy Davis Warrington scored 10. Dalen Leftbear continued his steady season with nine points.
In Sunday’s loss, only one Royal made double figures. Quyavant Douglas led LRSC with 12 points off the bench.
The LRSC hockey teams were also on the road this weekend.
The men’s team took a pair of close losses to the University of Montana on Friday and Saturday.
The Royals fell 6-4 on Friday. Down 3-0 after the first period, Brody Parker and Chael Rozdeba scored in the second period to cut the gap to 3-2. It was the eighth goal of the season for Parker, a North Star alum who played high school hockey for the Devils Lake Firebirds.
Montana responded with two more goals in the second period to make it 5-2. Nathaniel Flett and Tyler Rogers both scored for LRSC in the third period, but it wasn’t quite enough to complete the comeback.
Jaden Kleinjan made 27 saves with 33 shots on goal. LRSC had 26 shots of its own.
The Royals fell again on Saturday, 5-4. They trailed 1-0 after the first period, and each team scored three goals in the second. Griffin Anderson exchanged power play goals with Montana to keep LRSC within a 4-3 deficit after two periods. Logan Dearborn and Tyler Rogers had the other two goals in the second period.
Down 5-3 with 1:39 left, Carson Beaudin scored for the Royals as they fell just short.
Carson Cronquist made 28 saves out of 32 shots on goal. LRSC made 25 shots of its own.
The Royals have now lost six straight games to drop their record to 7-9.
The LRSC women’s hockey team played just one game this weekend, a 9-1 loss at Jamestown on Saturday. Tatum Provencher scored in the first period to make it 2-1 at the time.
The Royals’ women are now 4-5.
Most of LRSC’s sports teams jump back into action this weekend. The basketball teams get to play in Gillette, Wyo., the day after Thanksgiving. Both teams are competing in the Gillette Classic on Friday and Saturday.
Men’s hockey hosts Jamestown on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Women’s hockey is off until home games against Augustana on Dec. 6 and 7.
